Enjoy Collection 2025: Q1
Doing some desk spring cleaning because the amount of random things I have tucked in these slots was getting out of hand.
Three months ago, I was putting together my end of the year reflections, which ahs included setting some collection intetnions. They aren’t rules, but some guiding principles:
For 2025:
Continue reaching for inks I have never tried or haven’t used recently.
Inventory my paper and notebooks.
Share my experiences as I explore the different parts of my collection/hobby.
Despite the absolute and utter chaos of these last three months I have made some progress.
#1 - “Dusty Inks” and Ink Stats
So that it’s easy to tell 2024 inks from 2025 inks I have switched to a pink ink pad instead of the blue from last year.
In the first quarter of this year I used 42 different inks with fourteen from the unused ink list. That is one more ink overall than this same quarter last year. That is primarily due to quite a few re-inking moments. I was craving familiarity, so aside from the new inks I revisited some old favorites, some of which I was surprised to learn I hadn’t used in over a year. Those inks were: Colorverse Rising Reflections, Coloverse Apollo 11, Colorverse Office Blue, Colorverse Black Hole, Diamine Celadon Cat, and Ferris Wheel Press Harlequin Dream.
I also rediscovered Wearingeul Anubis and Colorverse Hippocamp. It was great fun to play with those. A great brown-gray with copper shimmer and soft blue.
These were the 42 inks that I used this quarter (key: ^unused and/or dusty ink, +purchased/received in Q1):
Red (3) - Colorverse Office Red, Diamine Noel^, Ferris Wheel Press Ambrosia Indulgence^+
Pink (1) - Teranishi Opera Rose^+
Orange (1) - Ferris Wheel Press Terracotta Canyon
Yellow (3) - Colorverse Rising Reflections, Colorverse Sunbeam^, Colorverse Christmas Star^
Green (5) - Anderillium Luna Moth Green, Colorverse Alpha Centauri, Ferris Wheel Press Festival Grove, Ferris Wheel Press Book of Botany^+, Teranishi Gentle Green^+
Blue (16) - Colorverse Apollo 11, Colorverse Supernova, Colorverse Office Blue, Colorverse Strelka, Colorverse Hippocamp, Diamine Celadon Cat, Diamine Early Dusk, Diamine Vibe^, Diamine Cosmic Glow^, Diamine Polar Glow, Ferris Wheel Press Blue Revelry^+, Ferris Wheel Press Harlequin Dream, Ferris Wheel Press Blue Yosemite Falls, Ferris Wheel Press Grand Central Skies, Laban Poseidon, Yoseka Wing Kong Que^
Purple (6) - Colorverse Iris Nebula, Colorverse Milky Lavender, Diamine Jacaranda, Diamine Poutpourri, Ferris Wheel Press Mulberry Majesty, Ferris Wheel Press Bayou Berry Mist
Brown (3) - Diamine Salted Caramel, Ferris Wheel Press Bookkeeper’s Brass^+, Ferris Wheel Press Steeped Umber^
Black/Gray (3) - Colorverse Black Hole, Teranishi Antique Black^+, Wearingeul Anubis
Like usual I was leaning heavily on blues, although this set of blues is pretty diverse - light, dark, sheen, shimmer.
Overall, I used far fewer shimmer inks this quarter than in 2024. Part of that was due to trying out the foldable Kaweco mini-converter. In my experience shimmer does better in a refilled cartridge and a tiny amount of white lightning ink additive. I’ve been missing sparkly inks though so there will probably be more in Q2 (currently have four shimmers inked up).
#2 - Inventory Paper and Notebooks
I am about to start this process. I am currently rearranging my desk area for a refresh. I made a great antique find around Christmas in the form of a circa 1900 file box. It was made by Yawman and Erbe Manufacturing Co. out of Rochester, New York. They made office supplies and filing cabinets. The style of the wood is one that they discontinued after a time due to the cutting process to get the stripes in the grain was labor intensive (and metal also became a more popular filing cabinet material). I have been moving my papers and paper pads into it so they can be in one place as opposed to spread across several shelves and drawers.
The actual documentation may take a while because I keep finding more paper as I tidy and rearrange. I do look forward to trying and creating on papers I am finding. The “dusty ink” list has helped me find a lot of treasures I forgot that I have, so the list of paper will likely do the same.
#3 - Sharing my Stationery Experiences
This one is probably the most important to me right now. I think one of the most beautiful things about this hobby is not the works of art we write with, but the people who use them. I adore pen meetups when I can join them, because they always feel so welcoming and everyone is talking about something they love. It’s human connection in a world that is being driven into a more and more digital world.
I want to collaborate with folks both in person and online. I want to share what I have for those who don’t have as much access to fountain pen and stationery related things than I do. I want to encourage people into the hobby.
I’m hoping to teach some classes locally in my community about journaling and maybe even fountain pens (my community is a wasteland of any sort of stationery or even specialty art store).
And, announcement time, I will be leading a few journal exploration sessions at the Chicago Pen Show! These classes will be free. I have one on Friday and two on Saturday since last year they ended up getting completely filled. I will also be hosting a fountain pen social on Saturday night to have an “official” meeting place for people to hang out. It’s going to be pretty informal, but I plan on having some conversation starters/activities so it makes socializing easier if you don’t know anyone (something I always appreciate). I am really looking forward to the show this year!
Currently Inked
Ferris Wheel Press Knitted Nettle - Kaweco x Galen Leather Sport Carmine 14K BB ‘journaler’ - I decided on this teal-green with pink shimmer for my header ink this month. This ink came into my collection in early 2024 and it was last used this past August. It looks great on the page.
Anderillium Luna Moth Green - Kaweco Sport Dark Olive BB - I had a little bit of luna moth leftover from last month as a header ink and didn’t want to let it go to waste. This ink is such a pretty color, and it shows off well in this wet BB nib.
Ferris Wheel Press Hearty Harvest - Kaweco Ice Sport Green B - One of the inks I mentioned in last week’s post. It’s definitely not disappointing. It is also highlighting how little I’ve used oranges in the past few years despite it being pretty high on my favorite colors list. This one is very fun with a burnt orange base and orange shimmer.
Wearingeul Othello - Kaweco x Elite Royalty Sport Deep Red BB - I did end up inking all of the inks that I talked about last week and every time I’ve picked this one up I am like… how is this ink soooo good? I think I have about eight Wearingeul inks and this one is definitely my favorite. It’s just so unique in my stash and it is a very readable gray.
Monarca Mar Caribe - Kaweco Sport Iridescent Pearl M CSI - As pretty as I remember it. Other than the header pen this is the only grind I used this week and Mar Caribe looks really sharp in it. With the CSI shape of the nib it ends up with a slight halo effect where the ink is darker at the edges of the letters and lighter in the middle.
Ferris Wheel Press Whispers of Twilight - Esterbrook JR Paradise Purple B - My Esterbrook hadn’t gotten pulled out in a while so I decided it was time to mix it back into the fold, at least for one inking. Whispers of Twilight is one of the newest inks in the Ferris Wheel Press Ferritales collection and it is really pretty. Purple is one of the colors FWP does really well. I think I have six different purples from them and they all have personality. This one is a pink leaning purple with silver shimmer. It’s inspiration was bedtime stories and it fits that theme very well.
Teranishi Antique Black - Kaweco liliput copper F - Still working through the second converter fill. If I didn’t already have a lot of good blacks in my collection, this one would already be joining the group in bottle form. It’s a very nice black.
Teranishi Night Time Soda - Kaweco liliput fireblue M - This is another one of the Teranishi inks that I was really excited to try. With all of the blues in my collection I was wondering if this one would be a dupe for anything… so far I can’t think of any that I have that is this shade of blue. It’s not as bright as I thought it would be, but it’s still really nice. The sheen on this one is wild in writing. On the right paper the sheen haloes on the letters which is a very neat effect. It’s not love yet, but it’s definitely a unique color.
Project Chaos Update
I thought it would be fun after the currently inked to start a kind of “what gets me writing” aka Project Chaos update. This week included a lot of zen doodling, for which I was using Life Writing Paper Bank Paper. For journaling I was primarily back in my 272 page Sterling Ink A6, while drafting was in the notebook that I pieced together from Mead Five Star paper. I’ve tucked an A6 notebook that I made out of an A5 Kleid notebook into the back of my TN but haven’t really reached for it. Gotta keep writing and see where the creative chaos takes me.